Liverpool, UK Gig

17 October 1998

Courtesy of R.McKeon

Just got back from Liverpool after seeing the band play at the Royal Court last night. Great gig, I thought. Queued in the freezing cold (why can't they tour in July?) for two hours so that I could get centre, front row - although the wait was made more bearable by listening to the band soundcheck and then playing spot-the-band-member as they wandered around - Dave Rotheray pulled his cap right down over his face as he walked past us, obviously hoping that we wouldn't recognise him - [We didn't approach him as he obviously didn't want to be bothered but it was hardly the best way to look inconspicuous!] Jacqui just took one look at us and ran!!! Are we that scary??? :-) There were only four of us so they were hardly going to be mobbed. Later Jacqui came back and stood a few yards away from us, and seemed a bit suprised when none of us went over to her... Anyway, at least Paul and Dave H didn't treat us as though we had the plague - I shall treasure forever my battered, rain-sodden Quench postcard signed with my intermittently-working crap black biro [I should come better prepared, shouldn't I?]. After speaking to the other fans I was waiting with, I'm annoyed that I opted for a seated ticket at the Blackburn show on their last 'intimate' tour otherwise I would have been with them on the occasion of their last meeting with the wonderful Mr Heaton - They were queueing outside the venue in the pouring rain with another three hours to wait before the doors opened. Paul approached them with the words 'You must be mad!' - and then invited them on to the tour bus to escape from the rain! What a lovely man.

Anyway... I've avoided giving a review of Quench so far as I haven't had time to properly digest the album yet and I know there's going to be some song on there that I've barely noticed yet, that isn't one of the immediate, catchy tracks, but which I'm going to absolutely adore in a couple of months' time. On the first couple of listens there weren't really any tracks which particularly struck me apart from Perfect 10 [which, okay, I had already listened to a few squillion times but that was one song which I _did_ love from the very first listen - an excellent choice for a single, IMHO]. Over the past few days some of the other songs have really grown on me *especially* Look What I Found In My Beer, which the band opened the concert with. I actually haven't stopped listening to the album since the concert but I don't know if that's because hearing the tracks live has given me a new appreciation of them or if it's just because I'm in a really Beautiful South-y mood after seeing them again. Anyway, I think you can still probably enjoy the tour if you're not too keen on Quench as most of the set was made up of older tracks. Some of my old favourites were left off (I Think The Answer's Yes, Let Love Speak Up Itself, Woman In The Wall etc) but all in all I thought it was a pretty good setlist. I agree that Your Father and I probably wasn't the best choice to close the show with, though. I like the song but after the wonderful, crowd-pleasing, upbeat Good As Gold it appeared to bring things down again and seemed a strange choice of finale. Paul and Jacqui, among others, donned Hillsborough t-shirts for this encore and these were also being sold alongside the usual Beautiful South t-shirts and posters.

During the show, Paul treated us to some of his unique dancing which was hilarious as usual. He, however, seemed more interested in the inflatable aliens which were being thrown around the audience. A couple of times people tried to throw one up onto the stage but Nasty-Mr-Security-Man kept confiscating them! Also of note at last night's concert was Dave H's unusual taste in footwear, which Paul insisted he show to the audience. He was wearing a pair of rather strange pink high-heeled shoes! I remember last time they played at this venue, Dave sang the line 'I still wear suspenders underneath my business suit' and people started wolf-whistling at him so maybe he decided he would treat us to a touch of cross-dressing next time round! First the 36D video, now this - I don't know what to think about our Mr Hemingway...

I got a copy of the setlist after the show so here's what they played (I don't think they changed anything from what's written here). I think it's almost the same as the setlist(s) previously posted, although I don't think Everybody's Talkin' was played at the earlier shows.

Look What I Found In My Beer
Pretenders To The Throne
Don't Marry Her
Have Fun
Dumb
Domino Man
Big Coin
Everybody's Talking
Lure of the sea
The Table
Perfect 10
Liar's Bar
36D
Rotterdam
One Last Love Song
Old Red Eyes
You Keep It All In
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Good As Gold
Father and I
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